Whitney reflects on Solihull defeat

The Saddlers’ pre-season schedule got underway today against National League side Solihull Moors. The curtain-raiser ended in defeat for Jon Whitney’s side, in what was a largely experimental 90 minutes.

There were two completely different XI’s in each half on show, and the impact of this week’s Cassius Camp showed in what was a leggy and tired performance at times.

Whitney spoke to the Official Walsall FC website
“It was all about getting minutes into the lads and 45 minutes under their belts,

“There were some plusses and it was great for the new lads to get their first game in front of the fans – it gave them a look at the four new signings.

“For the young lads, it shows them the standard. This is conference level and maybe that`s the level we`ll be looking to put them some of them out at. It`s a learning curve for some of them.’

In terms of the new signings, Guthrie and Devlin stood out the most, with Leahy having a quiet half and Gillespie struggling behind what was a very inexperienced second-half backline.

Whitney also provided an insight into the kind of line-up we can expect in the upcoming friendlies.

“As we go through the next few games, we`ll look to play a more experienced and settled team.”